Brotherly Love to NYC
by Wllflwr98
Summary: After Shawn, Eric, Cory and Topanga all say goodbye to their family, friends, and hometown, they head out to NYC. They begin to adjust to their lives as independent young adults, as Cory and Topanga start looking for an apartment to share with Shawn, search for work, and begin law school.
1. Chapter 1: Big Apple

_**Hey everyone! This story follows Cory, Topanga, Shawn, and Eric immediately after their final lecture in Brave New World: Part 2. The first couple of chapters may not be that exciting, as I'm just setting the tone for the start of their young adult lives in New York. Please stick with it, however, because Chapter 3 is a chapter I promise Boy Meet World fans will want to read! **_

_**I hope to write a series of stories following them (mostly centered around Cory and Topanga) through their new life in New York, covering stuff such as Topanga's pregnancy and birth, Cory's story of becoming a teacher, and other exciting stories that occurred in the years before Girl Meets World began. Please tell me what you think below, I love hearing what you all have to say! Thanks for reading!**_

The school parking lot was nearly empty, despite a few pieces of trash and a squirrel or two flying across the pavement every so often. A soft breeze brushed through Philadelphia that morning, and the blue sky above was covered in puffy clouds and streaks of chemtrails left from passing planes. Cory stood inside the dark hallways of the school, looking out at it all from behind the front doors, hesitant to leave behind the calming feelings of déjà vu that he felt from revisiting his old school.

It felt unnatural not to see school buses and mini vans pulling up to the front doors, the strobe lights of the buses flickering through the dark dawn of morning as young students made their way into the school. He remembered many a time filing into the school cafeteria with Shawn in the mornings, sitting at their usual table and waiting for their day with Mr. Feeny to begin.

He remembered how much he used to hate those days, and how much he used to despise his now beloved teacher; right now, he would give anything to be his old 6th grader-self again.

Finally, Cory exited his old elementary school for the last time, spotting Topanga, Shawn, and Eric leaning against their cars in the middle of the parking, waiting for him to come out and start up their trip to NYC. He sighed, looking at his watch; it was already 11:00 AM, which meant there was no more time for needless stalling. It was time to go.

"Alright," Cory clapped his hands together and tried to sound eager, grinning at the solemn-faced gang. "Ready to hit the road?"

Shawn stood up, sighing. "Guess we might as well."

Eric was still red-eyed as he looked down at the pavement, and Topanga was sniffling as she leaned against her and Cory's car. Cory put his arm around his wife and faced the boys.

"Come on, guys, this was going happen sometime anyways. I mean, did you really think we were going to live in Philly forever?" Cory said, hoping to improve their melancholy moods.

"The time comes when one feels that it's time to leave and begin a new life, in a new city, sometimes with new people. And, for us, that time arrived a little sooner than expected. But, we're lucky. We have each other, we're not going out into the world alone. We're headed to New York City _together_."

Nodding their heads, everyone seemed to feel a little enlightened. They _were_ going together, and everything was always less terrifying when you had a friend at your side.

"Alright, then let's get going! New York City, here we come!"

Cory and Topanga led the way in their Chevy, Eric and Shawn trailing behind as "The City of Brotherly Love" became smaller and smaller in their rear view mirrors. They anxiously counted the miles as they passed by signs lining the Interstate that told them they were closer than ever before to NYC. Finally, after a couple hours, they reached the biggest of them all: "New York City - 2 miles ahead".

As they pulled into the concrete jungle, Cory and Topanga drew in their breath at the sight. The two of had been in downtown Philadelphia multiple times before, but if they thought that _that_ cluster of buildings was big, it's size was laughable compared to the vastness of NYC.

All around them, huge packs of people were crossing the streets and innumerable taxis were pulling into the streets, slowing traffic to almost a standstill. The two of them had never seen so much population and congestion in a city before; the large amount of people, buses, and taxis made an otherwise enormous city seem way too small and cramped.

Eventually, the four of them made it to a parking garage, and were somehow able to snag a few spots close to each other.

Jumping out of their cars, Eric and Shawn enthusiastically said to Cory and Topanga, "Did you see all those people? This place is incredible!"

"And I thought Philadelphia was big!" Shawn said, looking out at the city around them.

It seemed to take them even longer to reach their hotel, as they all nearly got lost in the midst of the hustling New Yorkers. It was the middle of a business day, and they couldn't have picked a worse time of day to arrive in New York.

The gang separated on the 18th floor, heading into their hotel rooms after agreeing to meet up a couple hours later in the lobby and head out for dinner. Cory and Topanga entered their room, scanning the place that was to be their temporary home for a couple days until finding an affordable apartment.

On the right side of the room was a queen-sized bed, surrounded by two nightstands with lamps lighting up the room. Across from the bed, sitting on a chest of drawers scooted up against the wall, was a little TV.

"Alright.." Cory grinned, picking up the remote and the TV guide as he settled on the edge of the bed.

Also squeezed in the room was a desk, an armchair, and a beautiful view of NYC from the balcony. Topanga set down their suitcase, reaching for the curtains that covered the sliding glass doors.

"Turn off those lights, Cory. We're not gonna need them." Topanga said as she whisked the curtains open, revealing the bottom halves of the skyscrapers that surrounded their hotel and filling their room with natural light.

"Agghh, close those blinds, Topanga, you're glaring the TV screen." Cory groaned, squinting at the screen as he familiarized himself with the channels.

Topanga ignored him, stepping out into the air of NYC and resting her arms on the edge of the balcony. The sound of cars' tires inching along the roads below and the honking of their horns reached her ears, along with the occasional airplane roar sounding from above the buildings. The red and green of traffic lights reflected onto their front windshields, ceasing the flow of people momentarily as cars began to scoot down the streets.

The only things to look at was people, streets, and skyscrapers.

Topanga felt Cory's hands wrap around her as he came and stood behind his wife. He rested his head on her shoulder and softly kissed her on the cheek, then moved to stand next to her and lean over the balcony.

"So, what do you think about our new city so far?" He said thoughtfully, turning his head to smile at Topanga.

She continued looking out over the city, silent for a moment as she thought. "It'll take some adjusting to," she turned to Cory and returned his smile, "But, I know that we can, because, like you said, we all have each other."

Smiling back at her, Cory reached for her hand, and together, the two of them looked out over their new home.


	2. Chapter 2: Influential Decisions

"Alright," Topanga began as they all sat down at breakfast the next morning. "We've got many issues to tackle today, so let's get down to business."

Topanga laid a few sheets of paper out on the table, all of them filled with pictures and prices of local apartments. "I looked up some low-priced apartments in the area about a week ago, and I came up with a few results. They're not all that great, but we're all young and broke, so this is what we'll have to put up with."

"Eric, let's start off with you. I found an apartment in West Side Manhattan, and the rent is $1,900 a month. You're the only one out of us who has a college degree, so do you have any ideas on a job or a career you might want to go after?"

"Gosh, I don't know," Eric said, shaking his head. "I don't really have anything that I'm good at, so I guess I'll just go for a normal job right now."

Cory looked thoughtful as he swallowed a bite of eggs. "Actually, Eric, you have a knack with kids. You always have."

"Yeah, the way you handled Tommy seemed to be so natural for you." Shawn chimed in.

"I bet you'd make a good day care teacher!" Topanga said enthusiastically.

Eric smiled a little at the suggestion and remarks from his friends. "Maybe so...I mean, it is something I enjoy. You know, I found that there's nothing more satisfactory than having a little kid that looks up to you."

"Yeah, I'll look later to see if there's a daycare in the area." Topanga said, smiling at Eric.

"Okay, Shawn, on to you." She continued. "I started looking for a 2 bedroom apartment when I had the idea of you coming with us to NYC, assuming you'd want to stay with us. We could all help pay for the rent, and I figured it be easier on all of us to have each other's companionship."

"Yeah, sounds good to me." Shawn nodded.

"I found one that's actually a couple blocks away from the apartment I found for Eric, and the rent is affordable if we all chip in. I scheduled a tour of both apartments for this afternoon."

"I was thinking last night about some job options for me, and the thought of photography kept popping into my head." Shawn said. "I thought I could pick up from where I left off before I started college, begin an internship and see where it takes me."

"That's great, Shawn." Topanga said. "I remember you almost passed up photography for college, it seems like something you're very passionate about."

"Yeah, and I could find a place to work at part-time in between my internship." Shawn said.

"Sounds like you've really thought about it, Shawn, that's good." Topanga said, then began to address her and Cory's situation. "Cory, I thought that I could pick up a part-time job to go along with your job. After all, my internship is only for a few hours of the afternoon, so I could work for a couple hours in the morning."

"No, Topanga, I don't want you to stress out. I mean, the career you picked isn't gonna be easy, and I don't have a career at the moment, so why don't I just take on a couple of jobs? It'll leave you time to focus on your internship."

"Aww, thanks, sweetie.." Topanga smiled at Cory. "Are you sure you can handle it?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Cory softly smiled back at his wife, who reached over and gave him a gentle kiss as a gesture of thanks.

It sounded like a great plan to the two of them at the moment, but Cory and Topanga were about face a huge roadblock in the days to come.


	3. Chapter 3: Friends and Fractures

Everything had been going smoothly over the course of the gang's first week in New York. Cory, Topanga, and Shawn had begun to rent the apartment Topanga had mentioned, and Eric actually rented an available, affordable apartment in the same building. Cory picked up a couple jobs, one at McDonald's and one at a local coffee shop. Shawn had also landed a shift at McDonald's, and to his (and Cory's) delight, it was during the same hours that Cory worked there.

Eric was struggling a little on finding a job; he was flipping back and forth on the thought of being a daycare employee, wondering if he was ready to pick up such a challenging job. Not all kids would be as innocent and angelic as Tommy was, and he was also feeling restless, as he was surrounded by so much opportunity in a new city.

One night, everyone was gathered in Cory, Topanga, and Shawn's apartment, dining on the typical meal of broke young adults: Ramen Noodles. However, it was a particularly exciting dinner, as the group had received their first batch of letters sent to their new addresses.

Digging through the mail, they all searched for letters from loved ones. Topanga squealed with excitement as she pulled a letter from pile. "Guys, look! It's from Jack and Rachel!"

Slicing open the envelope, she began to scan through it. "They're in France! They're in Paris with their host families, and they say it's pretty difficult so far because they don't speak any English, but they are very friendly and are making them feel as much at home as possible."

Topanga pulled out a picture, gasping as she examined it. "Oh, and Rachel's got a _gorgeous_ view of the Eiffel Tower from her bedroom! Look at how it's lit up at night.."

"Wow.." Everyone whispered and nodded their heads at the beautiful shot, leaning across the table to get a closer look.

"They've started their Pre-Service training, and it's going well so far. Learning the language is, of course, difficult at the moment, but Rachel says it sounds so pretty when spoken by their trainer. They miss us, and hope we're doing well in New York!"

Next, they discovered a letter from Mr. Feeny amongst the pile of letters. Eric opened it up, beginning to read it to everyone:

"Hello, all, I've enjoyed receiving your updates from your letters. It seems as if you each of you are doing well so far.

Lila and I are content and in good health, but Philadelphia just hasn't seemed the same without you all. I've begun to teach some summer courses at Pennbrook, and it feels very odd not seeing any of you filling the seats. Cory and Eric, the backyard has not been as quiet and lonesome as I expected it to be; as Joshua has gotten used to being up on his feet, he has been filling the air with squeals and giggles as he plays outside, even helping me with a little gardening."

Eric held up a picture of Joshua and Mr. Feeny, kneeling in his garden by the fence. Joshua gripped a little shovel, his shirt covered in dirt as he stuck the shovel into the earth. Mr. Feeny was knelt down beside him, his hands guiding the plunges of Joshua's shovel and apparently saying something to him. It looked as if he was doing the thing he most enjoyed, even with a fellow as young as Joshua: instructing.

Topanga cooed over the picture as Shawn grinned, chiming in with, "Look at the little tyke, already learning something from the best teacher in Philly."

Cory leaned back in his seat, smiling thoughtfully at his adorable, innocent, one and a half-year old brother, crouching in the garden by his beloved teacher: he could already picture Joshua sitting in a classroom similar to his old ones, listening to Mr. Feeny introduce him to the world.

Eric read on:

"I look forward to hearing from all of you, take care and know that I am daily thinking of each and everyone of you. Remember and never forget to dream, try, and do good, my dears.

Yours truly,

Mr. Feeny.."

Silence filled the kitchen for a few moments as everyone reflected on what they had just heard; out of everyone they had to depart from in the process of moving to New York, they all missed Mr. Feeny the most. Everyone, maybe, except Shawn.

"Hey," Eric pulled another letter from the pile, his brow creasing as he examined it. "I've never received mail from this address before...it's from San Fransisco.."

He cautiously broke the seal on the envelope, unfolding the letter and immediately beginning to smile. "It's from Tommy! I'd recognize that handwriting anywhere..."

Everyone at the table _ooo_-ed and _ahh_-ed as he began reading the letter:

"Dear Eric,

I am having a very fun time in California. My new parents and sister are very nice, and their dog keeps giving me kisses. They have a big pool with a slide in the backyard, and everywhere I go there are palm trees and beaches.

I've made some friends at my new school, and we sometimes shoot hoops and play tag after school. I still really miss you, but I am glad that I was adopted by these people. They love me very much, and I love them, too.

Love,

Tommy..."

Eric grinned softly to himself. "Oh, and here's a note from his mom."

"Eric: He hasn't stopped talking about you all the while he's been here. He really looks up to you, and misses you more than anyone in Philadelphia. Perhaps, next summer, or even sooner, we could fly you out here for a visit. I'm sure he would be so happy to see you again.

Also, we can't thank you enough for giving him up for us. You absolutely did the right thing, and we can't imagine what it'd be like without Tommy now. We're forever grateful..."

Once again, everyone was silent as Eric finished the letter.

"You know," Eric finally broke the silence after a few moments, "I think I know where I'd like to work now...a caretaker at the orphanage downtown."

Cory, Shawn, and Topanga all shared a glance with each other. They knew how attached Eric would get to the kids, which would make it even harder on him when they finally found a family to leave with.

"Eric, that'll be a tough job." Topanga began. "I mean, you'll get close to the kids as you care for them everyday, and they eventually have to leave..."

"Yeah, but that's the exciting part about it all. I mean, when I thought I was gonna adopt Tommy, seeing him get so ecstatic made me feel like I was on top of the world. And seeing that kind of excitement would come with being a caretaker, finally watching them leave with a new family after striving to get them in that position for so long...it would be so rewarding."

Everyone seemed to be convinced after hearing Eric sound so prepared. "Go for it, then! I bet you'd be such a great role model for the kids." Topanga said, smiling at Eric.

Turning their attention back to the letters, Shawn dug around for one from Angela. He finally found her handwriting on the back of an envelope, his excitement beginning to quicken his heart beat as he reached for the letter. Opening it, he began reading to himself, forgetting that everyone else at the table would have liked to hear what she had to say as well:

"Hey, everyone!

My father and I have arrived in Europe, and right now we are spending time in London before we head to the military base in Germany. It's amazing to be downtown, seeing things such as Big Ben and the London Eye up close when I've only seen them in books and pictures before. I can't help but think about how great it would be to have all of you out here, too, experiencing the wonders of it all alongside me.

I especially think of you, Shawn. I read your poems you've written for me as I sit in outdoor cafes, drinking coffee as Big Ben chimes away the hours. I miss you more than anything, and I can't wait to see how you're doing.

I send my best wishes to you all from London, and I look forward to hearing how you all are doing!

Love,

Angela.."

Shawn ached inside as his eyes gazed at her beautiful penmanship, especially the way she gracefully signed her name. He thought of her for what felt like every minute of the day, and he had dreams of her sometimes at night.

"Shawn?"

Topanga's voice brought him out of his daze. He looked at her with questioning eyes, wondering what she wanted.

"Can we hear what Angela had to say, too?"

"Oh, yeah, sorry..." Shawn handed the letter to her. "Cory, why don't we go move you and Topanga's bed frame into your bedroom, it's getting late."

Cory took this as a sign that Shawn wanted to talk with him about Angela, so he rose from the table and followed him into the vacant living room. Picking up the bed frame, the two of them maneuvered towards the bedroom door.

"I'll tell ya, Cory: I am honestly so furious with myself." Cory could see Shawn's teeth gritting as his face muscles tightened. "I mean, _why_ didn't I just propose to her when I had the chance? I could have married her and _gone_ to Europe with her! Why didn't I think of that beforehand?"

As Shawn ranted on in an angry daze, he was partly paying attention to where he was going. His carelessness caused him to back Cory into the doorframe, the impact of the bump then causing Cory to loose his grip on the heavy bed frame and send it falling right onto Cory's foot.

His yowl echoed through the apartment almost as loudly as the _crack_ coming from the bones in his feet.


	4. Chapter 4

"Are you serious?"

The concern and disbelief in Amy Matthews' tone drew her family's eyes away from their dinner plates.

"How did he break his foot? You all have only been in New York for a little over a week!" Amy handed a dripping spoonful of applesauce to Alan so that he could continue to feed Joshua, leaving her to focus on the sudden predicament that had come up.

"Well," Topanga collapsed into a seat in the hospital waiting room, trying to relieve some of her overwhelming stress with a huge sigh. "He and Shawn were moving our bed-frame into our bedroom when he lost his grip and it fell on his foot."

"How bad is the break?" Amy asked anxiously, her eyebrows furrowed as she tried to take in the seriousness of the situation.

"The doctor said its not completely broken, but he'll have to keep a cast on for six or eight weeks." Topanga replied, examining the X-Rays that she held in her hands. "Gosh, this is so typical. Right when we are about to get a start on things, something bad like this happens and sets us so far back.."

"Topanga, Topanga," Amy sternly tried to get her daughter-in-law's attention, "First off, you _got_ to keep a positive attitude, or you'll be completely miserable. Now-"

"I start my internship at the law firm in a couple days, and Cory was supposed to start his jobs _tomorrow!_ How positive can I be when everything is falling apart?!"

"Honey, listen to me. I will be down there tomorrow morning to help out for a few days and get you both back on your feet, but please, try to stay optimistic. The only way you're going to be able to cooperate with this situation is if you stay _calm_ and positive.

A long, deep breath could be heard on the other side of the line as Topanga tried to calm herself.

"If you can't do so for yourself, do it for Cory. I'm sure he's just as stressed out as you are." Amy hung up the phone with a sigh, staring out into space as she planned out the future in her head.

"Amy, is everything OK?" Alan asked, searching his wife's exasperated expression.

"No, Alan, everything is _not_ OK. Cory and Topanga have already fallen flat on their butts, and they've only been in New York for a little over a week!" Amy snapped.

"Can you at least tell me what happened?" Alan tried to calmly respond.

"Cory broke his foot while moving their heavy bed-frame, so he'll be out of work for around six to eight weeks, which means neither Cory nor Topanga have a job at the moment. And to make matters worse, Topanga starts her internship in a couple days!"

Ironically, Amy had just finished telling Topanga to keep her spirits up, only to turn around and start acting anything _but_ positive.

"Well, are you going to go down there and help them?" Alan said.

"Alan, weren't you listening to me on the phone just now? I said I'll be down there by tomorrow morning!" Amy yelled, taking her frustration out on her husband.

She seemed to realize that she had been losing her temper, as she began to calmly inhale and exhale. "I'm gonna go upstairs start packing some clothes for me and Joshua. Morgan, could please do the dishes, and Alan, I would appreciate it if you continued to feed Joshua his supper."

As soon as Amy was upstairs, everyone resumed eating. Nothing but the clink of silverware against dishes and Joshua's content baby gurgles filled the otherwise silent kitchen.

Mr. Feeny, who had been peacefully lounging on his back porch with his wife, noticed the raising of voices coming from the Matthews household. He was now rapping on their backdoor, proceeding to open the door as Alan beckoned him inside.

"Is everything alright in here? I heard some yelling from my backyard." Mr. Feeny asked.

"Actually, everything is _not _alright, George. We just got a phone call from Topanga, who told us that Cory broke his foot earlier tonight." Alan said, sounding nearly as irritable as his wife had been moments ago.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Mr. Feeny offered.

Alan shook his head. "That's alright, George; Amy and Joshua are headed up there tomorrow morning to help the two out for a few days."

Just then, the phone began to ring again. Alan, who still had his hands full with feeding Joshua, started to rise from his seat, but Mr. Feeny quickly motioned for him to stay seated.

"Allow me." Mr. Feeny said, making his way to the phone and picking up the receiver. "Hello?"

"Mr. Feeny?" Cory's questioning tone sounded from the other side of the line.

"Hello, Cory." Mr. Feeny smiled at hearing his former student's voice. "How is your foot feeling?"

"It hurts a little," Cory responded. "But I'll be fine."

There was a thoughtful pause on both ends of the line, teacher and student both relieved to hear each other's voices again.

"Topanga wants to say hi." Cory handed the the phone to Topanga, who eagerly took it in her hands.

"Hi, Mr. Feeny." Topanga began to feel excited at being able to talk with her mentor. "Have any good advice for us? Because, if you do, we could really use it at the moment."

Mr. Feeny could tell Topanga was upset and most likely barely hanging onto the positive side of things, as he could hear anxiety fill her tone.

"Well, I suppose I might have a rather important lecture I could offer to you all." Mr. Feeny grinned,

"I know that right now, the future is masked with a troublesome fog, but one thing I've learned over the course of my years on earth is that the world will throw difficult challenges, pop quizzes if you must, at you here and there." Mr. Feeny began, hoping to soothe his beloved students.

"However, these are only temporary, and they come along for the greater good, even if they don't seem helpful at all at the moment. I believe these challenges come along for a reason, perhaps to toughen us and grant us experience, whether painful positive, that will benefit and help us to overcome problems in the future."

"So, take heart, my dears, for this is just a mere "pop quiz" that has popped up to prepare you for a possible "test" in the future."

A moment of silence followed as Mr. Feeny ended his little sermon, as both Topanga and Cory reflected on what they had just learned.

"Once again, Mr. Feeny, you never fail to amaze me and teach me something new. Thank you." Topanga's tone was full of gratefulness and emotion; Mr. Feeny could picture her nearly tearful smile as she stood in a hospital room in the midst of New York City, hanging to her teacher's every word as he lectured to them over the phone.

"Your welcome." Mr. Feeny smiled. "Get better quickly, Cory, and good luck on the start of your internship, Topanga."

"Thank you, Mr. Feeny." Topanga and Cory said in unison before hanging up the phone.

Topanga turned to her husband, pulling a chair to his bedside and gripping his hand. "Cory, we are going to make this work."

Cory smiled, seeing a new fire in Topanga's eyes and a fierce drive in her tone after hearing from Mr. Feeny.

"Mr. Feeny's right, this is just a small pop quiz, and we are going to ace it. That way, we can be prepared for any test that might be headed our way in the future." Topanga continued. "Now, I believe I can handle taking on a couple part-time jobs while you rest. After all, my internship is only for part of the day, and the rest of the day I can fill with work. We have Shawn helping out with the rent as well, and the remainder of the money can go to groceries and stuff like that."

Cory continued to gaze at his wife, loving the fiery, go-get-em attitude she now carried. "Topanga?"

Topanga looked up, her eyes meeting Cory's eyes.

"If anyone could do it, it would be us." He smiled, drawing a smile from Topanga as well. "I know if we continue to keep our spirits up and stay on each other's side, then we'll be fine."

The two of them softly smiled at each other, leaning closer and sharing a kiss.

Sure enough, they were fine. Amy and Joshua lifted everyone's spirits and helped them greatly, as Amy put their new stove to use by preparing pastries such as apple pie and entrees such as tender roast with potatoes and carrots.

Joshua's giggles and toddler shenanigans proved very useful as well, as he kept Cory from boredom and Topanga from becoming too stressed out. His adorable grins also showed up well on film, as Shawn put his photography skills to use by taking many shots of Joshua.

All in all, Mr. Feeny had been correct; the journey, while challenging and a little overwhelming, left Topanga and Cory feeling changed as not only humans, but as young adults who were finally beginning to adjust to life in their new world.


End file.
